Day 20: Mastering the Signals of Information for Engineering Leaders
Be Better Engineering Leader, a 30 Days Series
This is the fourth week of a series of daily lessons on how to Be a Better Engineering Leader. I recommend spending up to an hour on each lesson to gain insights into Product, Technology, and People—areas critical for every Engineering Manager.
In the ever-changing landscape of engineering leadership, making informed decisions requires more than just experience—it demands a robust system for gathering, analyzing, and acting on various signals. Today, we’ll focus on building and balancing your feedback system using internal, external, and possessed knowledge to steer your team effectively.
Understanding Your Signals
Possessed Knowledge: This is the collective expertise within you, your team, and your organization. While it’s instantly accessible, it can be limited by personal biases and past experiences.
External Sources: Insights gained from outside your organization. These include industry reports, competitor analysis, books, and conferences. They introduce new perspectives and ideas.
Internal Signals: Real-time data from within your organization, such as feedback from your team, observability metrics, and product analytics. These are the most direct indicators of your organization’s health.
Action Points
Audit Your Information Sources
List out your main sources of information for decision-making, categorizing them into Possessed Knowledge, External Sources, and Internal Signals.
Reflect on a recent key decision. Which type of signal dominates? Identify if there’s an imbalance.
Analyze and Adjust Your Signal Balance
Estimate how much time you spend on each category. For example, are you relying 70% on internal signals and only 10% on external sources?
Determine if this balance aligns with your current challenges. Adjust your focus as needed.
Implement One Improvement
Possessed Knowledge: Host a quick knowledge-sharing session with your team. Ask each member to share one key learning from a recent project.
External Sources: Schedule a 30-minute research slot to explore a new technology trend. Share your findings with the team.
Internal Signals: Improve your feedback system. For example, refine your one-on-one questions to probe deeper into team health and project challenges.
Democratize Access to Information
Review how your team accesses information. Is it siloed or widely shared? Pick one signal—like observability dashboards or strategic context—and ensure your team has equal access.
Extra Resources: For a deeper dive into explore my premium article: Signals of Information For Engineering Leaders - Your Sources of Data and Feedback.
By effectively balancing internal, external, and possessed knowledge, and making these signals accessible to your team, you’ll foster a more informed and agile organization. Take time today to audit and adjust your feedback system to stay aligned with your leadership goals.
Share Your Feedback
How valuable was this lesson for you? Please share your reaction, write the feedback in the comment, as a response to the email or talk to me directly on chat. I would be thrilled to get to know you better so I can adjust my content accordingly.
Has your friend forwarded you this lesson? Consider joining the “Better Engineering Leader” course. More details here.
Do you know anyone who can benefit from the content I share? If so, please forward this email to them.